


Curses, Comforts and Capybaras

by Andrina_Nightshade



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Animal Transformation, Baby Animals, Baby animal in peril (but only temporarily), CEO Ben Solo, Dreams, Empathy and love is the most powerful magic, Eventual Happy Ending, F/M, Fairy Tale Curses, Fairy Tale Style, Food, Food Porn, Hijinks & Shenanigans, Inept witch Bazine Netal, No Pregnancy, Pining, Protective Ben Solo, Safe to Read if Triggered by Pregnancy, Sometimes family is a baby hedgehog with his overprotective capybara Dad and a human Mum, The author apologises to her IRLs for the incessant capybara chat/videos, This is why you should never piss off a witch, arrogant Ben Solo
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-14
Updated: 2021-02-19
Packaged: 2021-03-16 01:00:52
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 16,113
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29198766
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Andrina_Nightshade/pseuds/Andrina_Nightshade
Summary: Arrogant CEO Ben Solo bites off more than he can chew when he angers a witch... And suddenly finds himself transformed into a capybara. Can kindhearted wildlife rehabber Rey help him break the curse?A Modern Fairy Tale.
Relationships: Amilyn Holdo/Shara Bey, Poe Dameron/Finn, Rey/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren
Comments: 131
Kudos: 120
Collections: To Find Your Kiss: The Reylo Fanfiction Anthology's Valentine's Day Exchange





	1. Ben Solo's Worst Day

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Bombastique](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bombastique/gifts).



> Thank you to Bombastique for the following awesome prompt:  
>  _In her career as a wildlife rehabber, Rey has cared for all kinds of creatures, but this is her first capybara. Of course, it's not actually a capybara, it's Ben Solo, a lonely, arrogant tycoon who got cursed to take the form of that friend to all other animals, the capybara._
> 
> I am a lover of anything vaguely related to fairy tales, and I hope you enjoy this bizarre modern-day fairy tale.
> 
> Happy Valentines' Day!
> 
> Update 21/2/2021: Now that this story is off anon, I have a few people whose support and input in the writing I would like to acknowledge:  
> [Rey_Lo](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rey_Lo), for beta reading the story; [antlersantlers](https://archiveofourown.org/users/antlersantlers/pseuds/antlersantlers) & [tmwillson3](https://archiveofourown.org/users/tmwillson3/pseuds/tmwillson3) for assisting with story outline and advice; [RosaLeoa](https://archiveofourown.org/users/RosaLeoa/pseuds/RosaLeoa) for inspiring the scene in Shara's kitchen; and [SolarLilith](https://archiveofourown.org/users/SolarLilith) for providing some suggested surnames for Finn. I couldn't have done it without you. I would also like to acknowledge the support, encouragement and friendship of various writers in the sprinting channels over on Discord. It truly takes a village!
> 
> Note 27.2.2021: Additional thanks to [antlersantlers](https://twitter.com/allielittlelegs) for the awesome drop caps which accompany each chapter!

long time ago, when the world was young, this land was rich with trees and grass and flowers. And one day, there sprung up a village. That village grew into a town; the town eventually became a city, which swallowed huge swathes of land. They chopped our trees and plundered our valleys for their wood and stone; and when there was none left, they built with glass and concrete, tall buildings which scraped the sky.

By this time people no longer believed in witches; but that did not erase them. 

As the city grew, it did so under the behest of greedy men. Men whose money and wealth and influence protected them from retribution as they metted out cruelty and took what did not belong to them.

But greedy men are no match for witches, if they should happen to cross one.

And this is exactly what happened to the man known as Ben Solo.

Ben had not been born greedy or selfish or cold. He had grown up knowing love - that crucial ingredient whose absence hardens so many hearts. He had been a quiet child, disinterested in life outside his books. Within their pages, he could walk the snow-covered lands of Narnia with Mr Tummnus; dine with Mad Hatters and March Hares; follow Willy Wonka around a psychedelic chocolate factory; and escape the loneliness and ennui of his life.

His mother and father loved him most dearly, their eyes and hearts overflowing with love every time they thought of their taciturn and bookish little boy. But the problem was they were not often around - for they loved not only their son, but the entire world, and hence devoted their lives to solving its complex and myriad problems.

His father Han was a physician. But he did not elect to work in any of the shiny hospitals and clinics of the city. He instead joined an organisation which established clinics in war zones and disaster areas and refugee camps. Much of the year he spent in places half a world away. Ben excelled in geography not by hard work and a rigorous approach to his studies, but by endless hours pouring over the globe in his father's study, tracing Han's steps and pining.

His mother Leia was a solicitor. She was bright and skilled, and nonpareil amongst her peers. But her skills did not lead to an office and partnership in an exclusive firm. Instead, she devoted her sharp mind and sharper tongue to be an advocate for those without means to protect themselves. Even the most arrogant and cocksure opponent would be rendered a trembling mess before in a courtroom. For she would not allow those without means or power to suffer at the hands of cruel and corrupt men if she could help it, no matter the long hours it involved.

And whilst Han Solo and Leia Organa were saving the world, Ben spent his childhood with a series of nannies and childminders. His belly was always full, his clothes always clean and his home always secure. Yey, his little heart hungered not for material goods - of which he had enough for three boys at the very least - but for the simple gift of time with his parents, an intangible proof of their love.

But that time never materialised; and thus Ben Solo became cold and distant. 

As he grew to manhood, Ben met the man who would change the course of his life for the worse.

Snoke was no wizard - not even a nefarious one - but he placed a curse on Ben's heart nonetheless. Not through magic or malice, but teaching him to embrace that one quality which his parents had despised most: greed.

Greed, Snoke declared, was good. It was greed and ruthlessness which built his empire; greed which granted him power and influence. Greed which would carve his name into history itself.

And Ben, who had already been raised in relative affluence, suddenly knew what it would be like to be obscenely wealthy. He drank whiskeys that were older than himself; wore suits and shoes of finest craftsmanship and design; lived in a huge penthouse with views of every splendor the city had to offer…

But still, his heart was empty. And no amount of Rolex watches or fine dinners at the most exclusive restaurants could fill the chasm.

And he might have remained thus, had he not crossed a witch.

Now, it is a common misconception that witches seek out mortals to curse. Curses - as even those with a passing knowledge of magic lore would know - take an overwhelming amount of effort to cast. Therefore, if you find yourself on the receiving end of a witches curse, you probably deserved it. Witches, alas, still suffer from bad publicity.

* * *

Snoke was in the business of property. At the time of his retirement, he had left his company to Ben Solo - an awe-inspiring position of power and wealth for one so young, for Ben was not yet thirty at the time. But this validation from his mentor did provide him with the fulfillment and love he craved, deep in his marrow.

The triumphant finale to Snoke's long and notorious career was to be a luxury apartment complex in an up and coming part of the city. His _modus operandi_ was to sweep in before prices skyrocketed, and raze the land and building to be replaced with another monument to himself and his greed. 

Area regeneration, the firm called it.

_Gentrification,_ the sneering voice of Leia Organa purred in her son's mind.

But, even as the cake from Snoke's retirement party grew stale, this project had not been completed. 

It had barely even started.

For as their firm had swept in, and cajoled/bullied the owners of the current homes and businesses on the road to sell up. A generous offer, they were told. And all but one had seceded to the lure of money or the unspoken threat if they did not acquiesce to Snoke's demands.

But one woman would not be moved - and no implied menace or outrageous sum of money offered would persuade her.

Ben Solo stood in his office, watching as the city moved below him. He pinched his brow. 

Snoke had visited the office earlier and was dismayed to find out about the ongoing delay to the project. He had implied that Ben was not fit to lead the company if he could not persuade one simple woman to sell her animal cafe. 

And feelings of unworthiness twisted around Ben's cold heart like a vine.

So he called his solicitor, and arranged to meet him at the cafe. 

And thus began the day that would change Ben Solo's life forever.

* * *

By the time Ben's chauffeur pulled up on Takodana Crescent, Armitage Hux was already waiting for him. They shook hands as acquaintances do, but shared no sentiments as they were not friends. Merely business associates.

"You have the papers?" Ben asked as he adjusted his cufflinks. His nose wrinkled with distaste as he regarded the area. Most of the shops were boarded up, the flats above them derelict and empty. He imagined how sleek it would look once these buildings had been demolished and his new and shiny apartment complex was built in their place. 

Hux nodded, and gestured to his briefcase. "You think you can personally persuade the Netal woman to sell?" He asked, incredulity leaching into his tone.

Ben gave a grim nod. "At this point, I just want the matter closed. Offer her what she wants, and we'll just absorb the cost somehow." 

"I don't think this is a matter of money for her," Hux remarked as he eyed up the cafe. The lettering on the frontage was faded, and even through the grimy window, Ben noted that the decor was two decades out of date. At least. The entire place was eerily dark, with only two other customers. Bizarrely, several animal cages lined the walls - around half were empty. The remainder were occupied by various rodents - guinea pigs, chinchillas and gerbils, all who regarded the two men in tailored suits with mute curiosity as they entered the cafe.

The proprietress herself was seated behind the counter. Ben had not been entirely sure what to expect of Bazine Netal - an older woman, perhaps, one fiercely opposed to the march of progress - but this was not it. She was of a similar age to him, dressed in a fashionable black and white striped dress, and even as he and Hux entered, she barely looked up from her phone. 

This rankled Ben. This woman, and her damned cafe, had been a millstone around his neck for almost a year. She had resisted his every effort to buy it over; away every underling he had sent to negotiate with her; and avoided any and all correspondence or attempts to arrange a meeting on his terms.

Her intransigence irked him. He had imagined her to be utterly in love with her little cafe. Seeing her thus - disinterested in her customers and browsing Tinder of all things! - caused anger to flare within him.

But he allowed Hux to approach first, to introduce them, and allow Ben a moment to centre himself before the negotiations could commence.

What neither of these rich and powerful men realised was that Bazine Netal was no ordinary woman - and they would both live to rue the moment they dared cross her… 

Their manners, at least, meant that they accepted her hospitality. But being a woman of business, she charged them heavily. £20 for two lukewarm lattes was extortionate, even by Coruscant prices. Ben watched her carefully as she prepared their drinks - the brief notion flashed across his mind that she might attempt to poison them - but he noted nothing surreptitious in her actions. Still, he let Hux drink first before he touched his own.

Once the other customers had left, Bazine joined him and Hux at their small table, pausing to release one of the guinea pigs. She placed it in her lap, and caressed it's furry head. Her eyes were glazed with boredom as she regarded the glossy designs Hux showed her, and she even yawned at one point.

"I don't see what you gentlemen hoped to achieve in coming here," she said when the topic of money was broached. "I made it clear to every one of your previous messengers, Mr Solo, that I have no intention of selling this place. Not to you, and not to anyone." Her eyes were hard as flint as she gestured to the grim and empty cafe. "This is my business and my livelihood." And no matter how he and Hux increased their offer, her gaze remained impassive.

A quarter of a million; half a million… even at the mention of four million, there was nary a glimmer of interest in her eyes. And, as their offer escalated to the point of sheer preposterousness, Ben Solo could almost hear Snoke's derisive tones purring in his mind. Fear of failure curled in his chest, fed by desperation. 

But he had learned to mask his frustrations. So, he affected that coolly dispassionate tone, and smirked. “Well, Hux,” he said, after the woman turned her nose up at ten million. “It appears Miss Netal and ourselves find ourselves at an impasse. An unstoppable force against an immovable object if you will?” He chucked a little at his own joke; Hux gave a louder, more sycophantic laugh, but Bazine Netal remained silent, her lips formed a moue of distaste. 

Ben stood up, and shook the woman’s hand with what he hoped came across as a degree of polite cordiality. But, as he slipped his jacket on, he paused and cast a critical eye around the cafe, before his gaze settled on the guinea pig still cradled in her arm. 

“You know, Miss Netal, I am a very fortunate man. I have lots of friends and connections with the local council - very _influential_ friends.” He allowed those words to linger in the air, before continuing, “Friends who would do anything I asked of them… Now, I assume you are up to date with all your paperwork and health inspections?”

Suddenly, the air itself seemed to vibrate; even the now empty mugs on the table clattered against its surface. And the beast in her arms suddenly began to squeal. 

“Now, Mr Solo… Do you think I can’t recognise a threat when I hear one?” Bazine crooned, her fingers caressing the creature’s head soothingly, “And you’ve upset poor Mitaka too.” 

His next words were cut off and Bazine snapped her fingers. Suddenly the outside shutters crashed to the ground - the cafe would have been plunged into darkness, if not for the eerie glow that surrounded the woman. The cups rattled once more, and one of them shuddered off the table and shattered upon the floor.

“That's the problem with you rich men,” she said in an icy voice, bending down and allowing Mitaka the guinea pig to scurry away before she rose to her full height and stood with both hands on her hips. “You believe you can take whatever you want. Silly boys.” She tutted, sounding very much like a scolding teacher despite the power emanating from her.

Ben himself felt a tremor wreck his body. To his left, Hux stood paralysed in fear.

Then, Bazine Netal's voice took on an eerie quality. She stood before Ben, and placed a hand over his heart - even through the expensive wool and silk of his business attire, her touch was ice cold. "You come in here under the pretence of generosity when what you really seek is to steal what is mine. Your wealth has shielded you - from decorum and from consequence - and you believe it entitles you to whatever you wish. Greed has taken root in your heart and has strangled it.”

She stepped away from Ben, but her eyes were brimming with fire. She stopped before Hux. All colour drained from his face. "I am sick of bullying, greedy men," she said. Her long, pale fingers wound their way into Hux's hair, crinkling beneath the copious amounts of gel he wore. “You're nothing but rodents in human suits. Perhaps it is time for the exterior to reflect that…”

A searing pain filled Ben's body. His skin began to itch, and he felt as though he was being squeezed in a vice, and no amount of struggling could release him. He tried to scream - but no sound passed his lips.

And then, there was only darkness.

* * *

Once the maelstrom of power swirling around her had retreated, Bazine Netal regarded her efforts.

The ginger irritant with the pompous tones was gone; in his place, -staring up at her with wide frightened eyes - was a mole rat. A very naked mole rat. She clucked her tongue and scooped the squealing, wriggling beast up and stuffed it in the pocket of her apron.

And then, only vaguely satisfied, she looked to see what had become of Ben Solo.

His expensive suit lay crumpled on the floor; the golden face of his Rolex was smashed. But, instead of the rat Bazine expected to see poking out of the collar of Ben Solo’s shirt was a capybara.

A rather startled looking capybara.

“Oh fuck,” she muttered. Admittedly it had been quite some time since she last attempted a curse - and never on two at once. And Mr Solo had been an exceptionally large man. Magic so often had a habit of taking shortcuts, especially if a spell was not so carefully worded.

And Bazine - despite her own belief in her abilities - had never exhibited an abundance of caution when it came to her curses, especially if they were cast in anger… 

She folded her arms across her chest, and gave the capybara a dirty look as it tried to scuttle away, as though he had not worked out how to handle the proportions of this body. The creature that was once Ben Solo slid, and emitted a shrill whistle as he cut a hindpaw on a piece of shattered porcelain. 

“Careful,” she said, rolling her eyes, although a smile crept onto her lips. “Two minutes and you’ve already wounded yourself, Mr Solo.” The creature turned baleful eyes on her. Bazine supposed he was trying to look threatening - but really, what was even remotely intimidating about a _capybara?_ “Come here,” she said gently, bending down and beckoning him closer. 

In response, the creature emitted a shrill whistle. It’s eyes immediately widened as though startled by the sound. The next sound it made was deeper - but still far from the menace Ben Solo the capybara was clearly intending to portray. 

Quick as a flash, she scooped up the creature by the belly. He was surprisingly heavy, and she found herself stumbling as she carried him towards the back room of the cafe - no doubt helped by him squirming and squealing and chirping in her arms. “Settle down! I need to look at your leg- Ow!”

Ben Solo sank his teeth into the meat of Bazine’s hand; she yelped, and he was able to wriggle free from her arms. With surprising speed given his earlier clumsiness with his new stubby legs, he bolted for the rear door and towards the street.

“Well, shit,” she muttered. 

A chorus of judgemental squeaks and other sounds filled the air from the cages lining the walls. “Oh shut up boys!” she yelled, and the creatures - apart from one smug looking chinchilla - fell deathly silent. 

As she went to collect a broom to sweep up the shattered cup, she spied Mitaka the guinea pig. He was hiding beneath a chair and snaffling some crumbs on the floor. With gentle hands, she picked him up, and placed a little kiss on his head. 

“Let’s keep this between us,” she said conspiratorially. “Otherwise I’ll never hear the end of it from Maz.”

Mitaka merely squealed in response.


	2. Oh, The Indignity!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much to everyone who has subscribed, commented or given kudos to this fic! 
> 
> Bombastique - I am delighted that you like it... And can promise yet more shenanigans over the coming days!
> 
> Finn's surname in this tale is Ikande (meaning "full of love") and was taken from [this excellent thread](https://twitter.com/SolarLilith/status/1347388262688686081?s=19) by [SolarLilith](https://archiveofourown.org/users/SolarLilith).

_old. Dark. Pain. Oh god oh god what the hell…_

A litany of curses ran through Ben Solo's mind as he scuttled through the backstreets of Coruscant. His leg smarted, and he could feel his fur matted with blood. Adrenaline is a potent drug, but its effects had already begun to wear off. 

His eyes darted around, but he saw no sign that the Netal woman had followed him. He limped for a few metres, and slunk into the gap between two large bins outside. And, for the first time since scampering out of that horrid cafe, Ben took a deep breath and tried to rationalise what the fuck had just happened… 

Assuming that he had not suffered some catastrophic brain failure or mental breakdown, or was not enduring the effects of a potent hallucinogen she had slipped into that pitiful excuse for a latte, then there but one conclusion to draw.

The Netal woman was evidently a witch; and she had cursed him.

He wanted to groan - but at least conceded that a capybara was the better alternative to Hux’s fate as a naked mole rat. 

Ben had succeeded in business through a combination of hard work and an analytic approach. Problems inevitably had solutions. He simply had to find the answer to this one. 

But until then, with a bleeding leg and black clouds swirling overhead, his priority was finding shetler.

* * *

Coruscant - as you undoubtedly know - has a reputation as a rainy city. From autumn to spring, seldom a day passes by when the heavens do not open with frustrating alacrity. It was more than the greed of men which made Coruscant miserable, after all.

And thus, it was on that evening that the clouds burst and poured forth their deluge just as Finn Ikande was making his way along Takodana Crescent on his way home from work. But - as any sensible resident of the city knows to do - he had set out from home prepared with an umbrella and waterproof jacket. Unfortunately, it appeared his boyfriend Poe had “borrowed” his earphones, so he could not enjoy listening to his usual soundtrack on the way home. 

And, if he had, our story might have had a very different ending… 

So, instead of being serenaded by the latest offering from the Max Rebo Band, he found himself listening to the melodies of the city - car engines and beeping horns, the soft pitter-patter of rain against the pavement and the material of his umbrella… And a plaintive, high-pitched cry.

Finn started. Had he imagined that noise? But then, beneath the thrum of traffic and the sound of rain, he heard it again. Softer, more like a whimper, that seemed to claw at his heart. And so, he followed that pitiful wailing sound down a rain-soaked alley, and found the source huddled between two overflowing bins.

It was… a creature, of some sort. Too big to be a dog, but beyond that he could not surmise it’s species. But - more importantly than such speculations - Finn realised that the animal was injured. It held one of its rear legs at an awkward angle, and he could see flashes of red in the rainwater. The creature’s eyes were wide and piteous.

With a sigh, Finn bent down and extended his hand to the creature, praying it would not bite him. Poe would certainly never hear the end of it. But he sensed no menace from it. The creature shuffled forward, and clawed at his knee. 

“Poe’s going to be furious,” Finn muttered, shrugging off his jacket and wrapping it around the not-dog’s sodden frame. “Bloody hell, you’re a chunky bugger!” He added with a groan as he lifted the creature off the ground, and staggered a little. But it did not squirm or struggle; merely nestled in closer to him. “Let’s get you warm, and we’ll take a look at that leg.”

* * *

Poe Dameron was not - as his boyfriend had so claimed - furious when Finn returned to their flat bearing an injured and sodden animal he had scooped up from the streets of Coruscant. Bemused, certainly, and a touch annoyed as he stood in the bathroom doorway and watched the scene unfold before him.

“Care to explain why there’s a capybara bleeding in the bath, and all over the guest towels?” he asked in a chargined tone, even as a smile “You do remember the ‘no pets’ clause in our tenancy agreement, right?”

“Ah, a _capybara_!” Finn said, smiling. “That’s what you are!” He scratched the creature’s head and continued to vigorously rub at it’s fur. “Pass the antiseptic, please.”

Poe sighed, and reached the green bag containing their first aid kit. “I didn’t know they offered modules in rodent surgery as part of teacher training,” he said, but there was no heat to the words. “Just so you know, if he bites you… I am definitely telling your mother.”

Those words sent a frisson of fear down Finn’s spine, but he immediately countered with, “And what do you think Shara and Amilyn are going to say when I tell them that I brought home a _poor, defenseless, injured, abused_ animal, and you refused to help me?” 

“Low blow, love,” Poe retorted, clutching his chest in a mock show of being wounded. He sighed once more, and ran a hand through his hair. “All right then… it’s not like rabies has a 100% fatality rate or anything…” And together - despite the capybara squealing and hissing from the sting of the antiseptic - they successfully cleaned and bandaged it’s injured leg with nary a scratch or bite landed.

“But we’re not keeping him!” Poe said pointedly, once they had tidied away the mess in the bathroom, and let the creature snaffle some mashed fruit whilst they ate pizza. Poe almost swore the damn capybara was eyeing their meal enviously. “Again, tenancy agreement. I would rather like my deposit back!”

Finn scoffed. “You've met our landlord, love. We aren’t getting that back anyway… But I agree.” A frown creased his features. “He’s not got a collar or anything… How do you think he ended up in that alley?”

“Smuggled into the country illegally, I'd guess,” Poe said sagely. “And then probably let loose when people realised how big he was going to get. My mums have some _insane_ stories of creatures they’ve looked after over the years. When I was a kid, someone brought a damn boa constrictor they claimed to have ‘found’” and he made air quotes around the word ‘found’, “At the bottom of his garden.” 

His boyfriend hummed contemplatively, before rising from his chair and going to scratch the capybara’s head. “Is your way of telling me we should take him to your mothers’ sanctuary?”

In response, the creature whistled shrilly. Poe blinked, and briefly wondered if the capybara - really, they had to give the thing a name - might understand what they were saying? Then, he chuckled.

_Don’t be daft, Dameron_. 

“Well, what else are we going to do with him? Besides, as highly skilled as your attempt at animal first aid was,” He winked, “It’ll be good to have a proper, _qualified_ person casting an eye over him. So, whaddya say buddy?” He bent down and petted the capybara’s flank. “Fancy a drive tomorrow? Get some good country air into those lungs!” The capybara shot Poe a malevolent look in response, but he merely laughed. “Oh man, my mums are going to _love_ you!”

* * *

Wrestling a capybara the size and weight of a small child into a car turned out to be a two man job when they set out for Poe’s family home that morning. The creature made its displeasure well known with a series of loud trills even as it squirmed and snapped at them. 

“Remember what I said about rabies!” Poe muttered, his face scarlet and drenched in sweat after dodging the creature’s large teeth for the third time in as many minutes. 

“Remember what I said about your mothers!” Finn shot back. “I don’t know what’s wrong with him, the Internet said they’re supposed to be friendly, docile creatures!”

“The Internet fucking lied!”

Eventually, they managed to manoeuvre their reluctant passenger into the car trunk, with only a few scratches to show as war wounds for their efforts. Finn sighed, and pressed his brow against the steering wheel. “I’m never going to hear the end of this, am I?”

Poe ran a hand through his hair, and tried to block out the persistent squealing of the capybara. “Take me to dinner tomorrow night - somewhere we have to wear a shirt too! - and I’ll only bring it up twice a year max.” He leaned over and kissed his boyfriend softly on the lips. 

It wasn’t the most pleasant of car journeys, and certainly felt longer than the hour it took. This was mostly down to their intransigent passenger and the persistent chorus of unhappy noises he was making. (Only mostly - Coruscanti drivers are not known for their patience, and there were more than a few near-collisions on the way out of the city). But, as they pulled into the town of Chandrilla and the driveway of Poe’s childhood home, the capybara had _finally_ decided to quieten its protests. 

Before they could even open the car door, they were greeted by Poe’s mother Shara in her customary flurry of hugs and kisses, admonishments on how skinny they both looked and (in Poe’s case) how desperately in need of a haircut he was. He of course bore this with his usual brand of filial exasperation. 

“Amilyn will be here soon,” Shara said in answer to his unspoken question. “She and Rey got a call about an injured fawn, and they’ve gone to investigate. They’ll be back in time for lunch though! Now, where’s this _gorgeous_ little capybara?”

“Not so little,” Poe muttered as he watched his mother and Finn open the boot and coo over the grumpy beast. 

* * *

As he endured a difficult and bumpy car journey away from Coruscant, and being coddled and fed by Shara Dameron, Ben Solo the capybara of course had no idea that the solution to this predicament would be meeting him in a little over an hour.

Nor that said solution would be known as Rey Niima.

In many ways, Rey’s life thus far had been the opposite of Ben’s. 

Unlike Ben, Rey did not grow up with distant but loving parents. She was a foundling child, placed in the care of the state before she could even form memories of the parents who neglected her. Her foster parents - a Mr and Mrs Plutt - had oscillated from apathy to cruelty; and she had counted down the days until her eighteenth birthday when she could be free of them. It was a toxic home. But somehow, she made it out with her wits and herself intact.

Almost. There were nights plagued by horrendous nightmares; moments of unnecessary panic when she heard doors slammed or raised voices; but she retained her sense of self and her kind heart. And she had a special affinity for animals - particularly abandoned baby animals.

She supposed wildlife rehabber was the natural career for her. Whilst she was also technically minded, and would undoubtedly have made a fine engineer with the correct training and education, she could ill-afford the costs of moving or commuting to a University city. Besides, she was not unhappy with her life. She had her autonomy; she had a small cottage that she shared with her friends Rose; and she was only twenty. There would be time one day to chase other dreams.

And it was not as though she disliked her job. Quite the opposite - she awoke every morning full of excitement and eagerness for the day and its challenges. Amilyn and Shara, the couple who ran the centre where Rey worked, were lovely and kind; sometimes they felt more like benevolent aunties than employers. Such as on weekends like this - when Rose and her girlfriend Kaydel had left for a romantic getaway to a spa - when they invited her to lunch. 

“Sorry to drag you out on your day off,” Amilyn said with a shrug as they made their way to the house after dropping off a - thankfully not injured! - fawn at the centre. 

“Oh, it was fine,” Rey replied brightly. “It was either that, or binge watching Drag Race in my pyjamas all day.”

Amilyn chuckled. “Well, there’s a surprise waiting for you - for all of us, I suppose - at home. You’ll never believe what my son’s boyfriend found yesterday evening…”

* * *

In the space of less than 24 hours, Ben Solo had been cursed, injured, kidnapped and was now facing the greatest indignity of all… being forced to eat mashed banana whilst the humans around him tucked into a veritable _feast._ The scent of home-cooked food - rich chicken, aromatic onions, pungent garlic and a cloud of spices - had tantalised his nostrils ever since he had been wrestled out of that tiny Volvo into the house. His stomach had growled the moment the door had opened. The woman called Shara had petted him and murmured sweet endearments of how “cute” he was, and laughed at his attempts at expressing his annoyance - really, could that Netal woman not have turned him into something more menacing than a damn capybara? - in between coaxing him to eat slices of fruit. 

He considered trying to bite her again when another scent suddenly caught his nostril. An aroma that he struggled to recognise, but seemed to stir something deep and _animalistic_ within him. Part floral, part musk, yet utterly intoxicating… And with every moment, it seemed to get ever more potent and closer…

Ben heard the door open - and had his injured leg still not been wrapped in a bandage - he might have attempted to make another run for it and try to find the source of this smell. Instead, he settled for shooting the purple-haired woman who entered the room a filthy look. 

But then, his attention was captured by the younger woman following her. 

She was perhaps twenty, with light brown hair falling out of a messy bun on the top of her head. Freckles dotted her pale cheeks, and her hazel eyes sparkled like jewels. And her smell… She was utterly captivating. Against his will, a low growl escaped Ben’s throat.

“Oh, how cute!” the girl - whose name, he gathered, was Rey - exclaimed, as she bent down to scratch behind his ears. Though he had fought similar touches from others, there was something deliciously magical about her caress. That same, relaxed sound spilled forth from his throat. “And so _big_! What’s his name?”

“Didn’t have a collar when I picked him up,” Finn said. 

“Where on earth did you even find him?” Rey asked, but her eyes never left Ben’s, and she continued to pet him. Unconsciously, he found himself leaning into her touch, and his eyes fluttered shut contentedly as he drank in more of her scent.

God, she smelled so _good…_

“In an alley beside that steak restaurant Poe’s boss raves about,” Finn replied. "Karl's or Kaleb's... Something starting with a K."

“Kylo’s?” Poe said, and Finn snapped his fingers.

“Kylo…” Rey seemed to test the word, before breaking into a grin. She rubbed the fur at his flanks with excited vigour; and there was something infectious in her joy that seemed to bubble within Ben too. His heart stuttered at her smile “I think he likes it!” 

“Well, in honour of our newly christened capybara,” Shara said, “Shall we eat?”

And Ben found himself being carried into the kitchen-dining room and deposited on the floor in front of - and grumbled as best he could - yet more mashed fruit.

The table was practically groaning under the weight of proper, _human_ food, and he began to drool as the woman named Shara listed off the dishes - _chiles rellenos_ , _pollo encebollado,_ rice and beans - before cajoling her guests into saying grace.

The fruit had never looked less appetitising.

Still, Ben - there was no way he was ever going to accept being called _Kylo_ \- had something else to distract him. 

Namely Rey…

He watched her eat with gusto, shovelling great forkfuls of food into her mouth. A smear of sauce clung to her chin for a moment before she or her fellow dinners noticed. Ben had the irrational urge to leap into her lap and lick the sauce off her.

Good grief, where were these strange animalistic urges coming from? 

_Because you **are** now an animal, _ Ben thought sourly.

Still, he watched in fascination as she moistened her thumb and wiped at the trail of sauce. A different type of hunger coiled in his belly; and he even dared to imagine that her eyes were drifting over to him. There was something sweet and fond in her gaze; something that wrapped itself around his heart like a blanket. 

When was the last time anyone had looked at him like that? Not with intimidation cloaked in fear; not with jealousy for his material success; not with the derision Snoke had so often subjected him to. There was genuine care in how her eyes roved over him; and maybe he was imagining it, but even a tinge of pity as well?

A bizarre notion took hold of him. He nosed his half-eaten lunch out of the way, and toddled over to her chair, putting his hands - _no, his forefeet,_ he mentally corrected - on her thigh and offering his best attempt at an imploring look.

“Oh, what’s wrong Kylo?” Rey asked, pushing aside her plate. “Were you lonely?”

“Call me crazy,” Poe said in between mouthfuls, “But I swear that the damn thing is eyeing up our food. He was doing the same thing last night.” He speared a piece of gravy-slathered chicken onto his fork, and waggled it near Ben’s nose. “Want some chicken, Kylo?”

“Absolutely not,” Amilyn said, in that imperious maternal tone that brokered no argument. “Capybaras are herbivores. And the only animals allowed at this table are the ones on it.”

With that, Ben scarpered back to his corner, and forced himself to finish his plate of fruit mush.

* * *

As the afternoon shadows grew long, Ben watched enviously as the three women bade farewell to Poe and Finn, and waved them off. Rey had slipped her own jacket on, and his heart sank at the idea of having to say farewell to her. 

“Want me to take him to the centre?” She asked Amilyn as she bent down to give him an affectionate belly rub. His ears pricked up at that. “It’s on my way home…”

“Are you sure?” The older woman asked. “He’s pretty heavy, and the boys did say he was a handful…”

“You’re not a handful, are you sweetheart?” Rey cooed, before scooping Ben into her arms. “I’ll not argue with the heavy comment though,” she huffed, “But I think I can manage. Doubt we have a portable cage big enough for him anyway…”

But Ben’s heart was so relieved and excited at the opportunity to spend a little more time with the lovely Rey that he did not protest, or squeal or struggle. 

As soon as they left the house, he felt the sting of wind against his fur, and he shivered in Rey’s arms. With one hand, she adjusted her jacket until he was enfolded in it, pressed against her chest and able to feel the thud of her heartbeat. He nestled in closer, drank in that intoxicating smell of her. 

“How did you end up here, Kylo?” She murmured, her voice barely audible over the whistle of the wind. “You’re a long way from home, wherever you came from… And all alone, too…” There was a hard edge to her tone. “I feel it too, sometimes.”

He made what he hoped she would recognise as a curious sound.

“My parents…” Rey said in a tight voice, “They weren’t good people… No, that’s not fair,” she added, shaking her head and knocking loose a single tear. “They weren’t well, and they couldn’t look after me. I had to live with another couple, and they weren’t kind. I couldn’t wait to escape…”

As best he could without knocking them both to ground, Ben wriggled in her arms until he could rub his cheek against hers, and capture her tears in his fur.

She laughed - a wet, blubbery sound that was somehow the most gorgeous melody he had ever heard. “God, I’m crying and pouring my heart out to a capybara in the middle of the street!”

_If only you knew…_

After a few minutes, they reached a wooden building with a huge garden and a sign bearing the words “Chandrilla Wildlife Rescue Centre” in green lettering. 

“Welcome to your new home,” Rey said. 


	3. Daffodils and Dreams

hat night, as he lay tucked up in his new bed at the Chandrilla Wildlife Rescue Centre, Ben dreamed.

_He is in a field of wildflowers; their petals and scents assaulting his nose. Rey is close - he can smell her intoxicating fragrance… So he totters through the long grass until he spots her. She stands but a stone’s throw away, the skirt of her yellow dress kissing the tall grass as she spins. Her musical laughter fills the air, and she clutches a single daffodil in her right hand._

_He wants to run to her… but a different idea tugs at him. Instead, he begins gnawing at the long stem of another daffodil, until the flower comes away in his mouth. A smug warmth fills his chest at the achievement, and he struts towards her to present his gift._

_Rey’s smile widens, and she tickles him underneath the chin before accepting the flower. He bows, and hurries back_ _to the cluster of daffodils to retrieve another one for her._

_She giggles when he gives her another flower. “Thank you, Kylo!” she says brightly, and leans forward to press a kiss to his nose…_

_…And suddenly he finds himself bathed in blinding light._

_He blinks; feels the grass and dirt tickle his hands and feet; feels the gentle breeze on his naked skin. His eyes snap to Rey’s - her pupils are blown wide, and there is a hunger in her gaze that he feels coiling in his own belly._

_“Hi Ben,” she says, her little tongue coming out to wet her lips. “Welcome back.”_

_And then she is on him, kissing with bruising and breathless intensity, hands roaming over every inch of his exposed flesh. He drinks her in; they lay together in the grass, as his hand slides up her bare calf, beneath the flowing skirts of her dress, and higher..._

* * *

A shrill alarm yanked Ben out of the dream, and into the cold morning light. He stretched, and puzzled over the arrangement of his limbs, and why his mattress seemed so damn uncomfortable, before the events of the last few days caught up with him. The cafe. The witch. _Rey…_

He growled, and closed his eyes. He had never been one to squander a morning - on the rare days off he enjoyed - languishing in bed. Every moment of his time was regimented, and such a indulgence would be a waste. Still, what rush was there to get up and enjoy yet more humiliating hours trapped in this awful rodent body? So he sighed, and tried to cling to the last tendrils of that very lovely dream…

Holding her in his arms - his _human_ arms, not these stubbly excuses he was now lumbered with - kissing her… 

Kissing her…

He blinked, his mind scrambling through a mess of thoughts. His present predicament was the result of a curse. Whilst two days ago, he would have ridiculed the notion of magic, evidently it did exist. And he had consumed enough fairytales in his lonely youth to know that not only could curses be broken, but that the means of doing so was via true love’s kiss.

_Yeah, because a girl like that is desperate enough to fall in love with an overgrown rat…_

That thought settled like lead in his gut.

But he was distracted from any melancholia by the sound of Rey's musical laughter. He sat up, pathetically eager, and angled his body towards the door.

“Morning everyone!” She announced brightly as she entered the door, clutching a flask coffee in her free hand. Almost immediately, a chorus of squeals and chirps and scratches erupted in greeting.

Ben was gratified to see that, once she had removed her red scarf and sat down the flask upon the table, her first destination was to be _his_ cage. His little heart fluttered, and he gazed at her with wide, loving eyes…

… Until she walked past him to greet the baby hedgehog in the cage next door.

“Good morning, BeeBee!” She crooned, reaching into the cage and stroking his tiny belly. “Are you feeling better today?”

The hoglet made a snuffling sound in response, and nuzzled against her thumb. It would have been adorable, Ben was forced to concede, had he not been so blatantly _jealous_ of the damn creature.

_So this is my life now… Stuck in a capybara’s body, pining over a pretty girl and resenting a bloody baby hedgehog. I’m starting to think Hux got the better end of the curse…_

Still, he watched her fawn over the little thing - feeding it milk from a syringe whilst singing; weighing it and exclaiming her delight at its progress; before returning it to his cage. Then, her eyes fell on Ben.

“Good morning Kylo!” She says cheerily. “Did you sleep well?”

“I would have slept better in your arms,” he tried to say, but what came out was a lovely clicking sound instead. 

“Come on, let’s have a look at that leg of yours with Amilyn, and then you can have the grand tour!”

* * *

Amilyn Holdo was the sort of woman oft-described as a force of nature: sharp of wit, fierce of mind, and a ruthless Scrabble player. And, luckily for Ben Solo, she was also a trained and experienced vet. Today, the process of having his injured leg cleaned, examined and re-bandaged was significantly less arduous than when Finn and Poe attempted it.

Of course, her choice of assistant might have had something to do with that as well…

"Good boy, Kylo," Rey said once the procedure was complete; and despite his hatred for the name, he actually _preened_ at her regard. He had always been a stoic, reserved sort. Turning into a capybara had evidently scrambled his brain. Still, it might have been worth it, he thought, to enjoy her little smiles and tender caresses.

She led - or perhaps cajoled - him out to the large enclosure at the rear of the centre. There was a large pond at the far edge, and Ben found himself with the sudden urge to canter over and submerge himself in the water. And perhaps drag Rey there too…

Scrambled brains indeed. Aside from the fact that the water would almost certainly be frigidly cold at this time of year, Ben had never been a lover of swimming even as a human. He had been reticent to show off the required amount of skin, remembering too well the teasing he had endured in school swimming lessons for his awkward, gangly frame. 

But before he could muse further on the matter, something else captured his attention. A cluster of brilliant yellow daffodils grew near the far edge of the fence, their petals bright as sunshine.

Images from the dream flashed through his mind. Though an deeply animal part of him wanted to linger on those of a more prurient nature, instead he tried to focus on daffodils. Why were they important? Oh yes, he had given Rey daffodils in his dream, right before she had bestowed the curse-breaking kiss upon him…

And so he broke away from her side and raced - well, as best as he could with three working stubby legs and a fourth in a bandage - towards the flowers. Long teeth chomped mercilessly at the stems until Ben had gathered three of the flowers in his mouth. With the same eagerness he then sprinted back to where Rey stood, regarding him with a bemused expression. 

He used his hand - _front foot, damnit!_ \- to claw at her trousers until she knelt down to his eye level. 

A furrow formed between her eyebrows. "Kylo, what…?" 

And Ben forced the flowers into her hand.

That surprised a laugh out of her. "Well, aren't you a charmer!" She scratched behind his left ear, before standing up. "The office could use some brightening up! Thank you so much." And she buried her face in the blooms with a smile, and turned to go back to the main building.

_Drat._

* * *

The dream recurred that night, and the following as well; always terminating with them lying in the grass, lips locked and his hand beneath her skirt…

Ben wasn't entirely sure what the capybara equivalent of morning wood was… but he was most assuredly suffering from it.

And on those mornings, he once again plucked three daffodils for Rey. But when no kiss was forthcoming on the second day, he tried nosing her cheek on the third. 

By the third day's end, his mood was halfway between despondent and furious. And, as he shuffled towards his bedding, he prayed for a night without that lovely yet devastatingly false dream…

He had done exactly as the dream recommended. He had brought Rey flowers - three daffodils, just as his dream self had done - but she had not bestowed that wonderful kiss on him.

For the first time, he allowed the thought to cross his mind that his transformation might be permanent. 

A low wail escaped him, causing the other creatures to stare at him. Not that they didn't do that already - they avoided him, as if they could sense what the humans could not - but he swore that the two tortoises (Artoo and Threepio) scuttled to the back corners of their cage, as if bars alone could not protect them from him.

Ben rolled his eyes. As he passed the cage containing that little hedgehog that Rey doted over every morning, he kicked it - just enough to startle the beast, who started wailing.

Guilt tore at Ben almost immediately.

_What kind of grown man takes out his frustrations on a baby?_ He thought. _I'm a monster…_

So he curled into himself and wept until a dreamless slumber finally claimed him. 

* * *

About a week after Kylo the capybara had arrived, Rey popped into Amilyn's office at the end of her lunch break.

"This is going to sound crazy, but do you think there's something… weird, about that capybara?" Rey asked. 

Amilyn sighed, and tapped one of her glasses legs against her lip. "You know," she said thoughtfully, "I'm glad you've noticed it as well…"

Both of their gazes drifted to the window overlooking the outdoor enclosure, and to Kylo slumped in the grass, bearing an expression that looked chillingly close to moping. The gaggle of ducklings which usually enjoyed following any large animal seemed to hurry past him, and none of the other creatures would come close. 

"Capybaras are usually very gregarious," Amilyn said. "But he seems almost… maudlin."

Rey nodded, but a frown creased her features. "True, but it's more than that. I swear, sometimes he seems to know exactly what I'm saying. And he does weird things too." She explained about the flowers he had been collecting for her, and Amilyn's eyes widened.

"That's definitely unusual…" she conceded. "Ever since Poe told me, I found myself wondering how Kylo ended up on a random street in Coruscant… and part of me suspects he's been someone's pet. Aside from that injured leg, he was remarkably well-kempt, and otherwise in good health. Maybe he spent a lot of time around dogs? He certainly seems to ape their behaviours from what we've both observed."

"I texted Finn the other day, asked him if anyone had put up posters looking for a missing capybara in the area," Rey said in a quiet voice, her eyes downcast.

"I asked Poe the same thing," Amilyn said, reaching across the desk to place a hand on Rey's forearm. "He said no."

Rey could not help the sniffle that escaped her. She rubbed angrily at her eyes. "He belonged to someone, and yet they abandoned him. I shudder to think what might have happened if Finn and Poe hadn't found him…" 

And the next thing Rey knew, she was enfolded in Amilyn's arms. "Hey," the older woman said, rubbing soothing circles on Rey's back, "It's okay." 

"They took him from his home and threw him away when it was no longer convenient!" Rey sobbed.

"You don't know that," Amilyn replied gently, but both women could hear the doubt leaching into her tone. "But I agree, he's obviously had a difficult time - the extent of which we can only speculate upon." Then, a sigh escaped her. "I worry we might not be best placed to look after his specific needs either…" At that, Rey's gaze snapped upwards. "I'm making some discreet enquiries- but until I can find someone with the right skills to give Kylo the love and care he deserves, he will always have a place here with us."


	4. Hoglets and Hijinks

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Content warning: brief moment of a baby animal (BeeBee) in peril...

ays started to blend into one another for Ben. How long had he been here at the Centre? There was no television - at least, not in any of the rooms he could access - nor any radio. And heaven forfend if he should try to access a newspaper…

Had his disappearance been noticed? Were police searching for him? Did anyone from his old life even _care_ that Ben Solo had vanished off the face of the earth at some point?

His mind drifted to his parents… Had his mother kicked up a stir with the police? Sat with his father at some press conference, clutching his baby photos and begging for him to come home? His heart clenched painfully at the notion.

If this was to be his life… if there was to be no way to break this curse and return to human form… he would never see his parents again. Regret for every harsh word, every torn letter, ignored text message and rejected phone call slammed into him with the force of a tidal wave. 

He should have been a better son; should have recognised the love they were offering, rather than resenting them for their perceived faults. Especially when confronted with the reality of Rey’s tragic childhood… 

Earlier that day, she had taken off her fleece. Her t-shirt had not entirely been able to cover up a large burn on her left bicep. At the sight, Ben had padded over to her whilst she fed BeeBee his milk from a syringe, and rubbed his nose against the mark. 

"Remember I told you about my foster father?" She had said in a low voice. Ben nodded - and incredulity flashed in Rey’s expression before she continued, "When I said he wasn't a nice man…" 

What words of comfort he might have offered her came out as clicks and squeals. Instead, Ben had licked the mark on her arm; and he swore her eyes grew glassy at the gesture.

Of course, then the hoglet had squealed at the loss of Rey’s attention, and she had proceeded to lavish tender caresses and praises upon it.

Ben grimaced. Petty as it sounded, it was getting hard not to resent the little creature.

He watched from his own bedding as Rey handed the day’s events over to Teedo, who was on night shift. Her colleague looked utterly disinterested in BeeBee's regimented feeding schedule or Rey's enthusiasm about the creature's weight gain either. 

"Chill out Rey," he said in that overly nonchalant voice, "See you tomorrow."

Even in the dim lighting, Ben saw the annoyance and doubt in Rey's gaze. But she merely nodded and left Teedo in peace.

Of course, Ben knew from bitter experience that there was no way Teedo would feed the hoglet enough. Rey was meticulous in her care of BeeBee, including setting a phone alarm to ensure he was fed every two hours on the dot whilst he was in her care. Teedo, on the other hand, would inevitably wait until the little beast was wailing loud enough to wake the dead before he would deign to give BeeBee his next meal.

Ben had never enjoyed a pleasant nights’ rest when Teedo was on duty…

…So when Ben awoke in the morning, relatively well-rested after only being disturbed once by his neighbour’s plaintive wails for milk, he realised with rising dread that someone was wrong. Badly wrong.

He craned his neck and searched for the tiny hedgehog among the bedding material. But BeeBee was nowhere to be found. And worse… the door to his cage was open.

Ben remembered sitting in primary school one day when a vet had come to give a talk at morning assembly. He had brought with him some baby hedgehogs, and in sombre tones, explained that they had been separated from their mother and found by the roadside, cold and dangerously lethargic. “They have a large body surface area,” the man had said, “And once their mother is not there to warm them, they can die frighteningly quickly.” 

That statement had caused the children to erupt into gasps and tears; and Mr Kenobi, their ancient headmaster, to suddenly spring up from his chair and shuffle their guest speaker off stage. But those words had stayed with many of the children - Ben included.

And now they tolled in his head like the bells of doom.

Instinct took over. He had already worked out the mechanics of his cage door some weeks ago, in the event of needing to make another mad dash for freedom. A few minutes of frantic fumbling later he had opened it. Heart thundering in his chest, he called and whistled for the little hedgehog, uncaring if he woke up every animal in the damn building. But BeeBee was not forthcoming.

One of the bizarre - and occasionally unpleasant - aspects of Ben’s new life as a capybara was his enhanced olfaction. It had drawn him to Rey with her distinctive, intoxicating scent; it had tantalised and frustrated him every time he smelled bacon and cheese and pasta and toast and literally _any_ food that wasn’t mashed fruit and vegetables or whatever mush he was served for his daily meals; and it repulsed him when he smelled the product of some of his fellow inmates’ less savoury bodily functions. But perhaps it might come in handy now…

He nosed around the bottom of BeeBee’s cage, until the hedgehog’s scent was practically branded onto his olfactory nerve, and then began to sniff the air until he caught the faintest hint of that smell. As fast as his stubbly legs could carry him, he followed the trail - down the darkened corridor and out the door to the main enclosure. Even with his fur, Ben felt the sting of cold air against his flesh; and now his mission took on even greater urgency.

He found BeeBee lying a few feet away from the entrance; his tiny chest rising and falling slowly, but his limbs as still as a statue. Ben prodded him a few times, but only the most pathetic whimper escaped the hoglet’s tiny mouth. 

BeeBee was weak; too weak, Ben feared, to even attempt moving. He cast his eyes upwards, and saw the grey hints of dawn peering over the horizon. Rey often arrived just after sunrise, which couldn’t be more than an hour away… And if he couldn’t safely carry BeeBee back to the warmth of the centre…

So Ben lay on the cold, damp earth, and curled as best he could around the tiny frame without crushing it, and prayed that the heat of his body would be enough to keep BeeBee alive…

_Please find us soon, Rey… You’re his only hope…_

* * *

Rey awoke that morning with a strange sense of foreboding clawing at her. She wandered around her house, checked every door and window was closed; ensured every item of electrical equipment was switched off, and triple checked the gas hob. But that irrational worry still gnawed at her as she locked her door and walked to work.

And the reason for her anxiety became apparent when she found Teedo asleep in his chair, and both Kylo and BeeBee’s cages _sans_ their occupants. Any verbal dressing down she might have offered her errant colleague would have to wait.

The only sound louder than the pounding of her footsteps as she ran along the corridor was the pounding of her heartbeat.

_Please be safe…_

Luckily, she located the capybara after but a few minutes frantic searching - huddled on the damp grass, and gazing at her with a mixture of fear and gratitude. 

“Kylo, what the-” Her words cut off as she spotted the tiny frame nestled against his hind leg…

She yanked a glove out of her pocket, and carefully tucked it around BeeBee, before scooping him up and hurrying back to the warmth of the centre, with Kylo sprinting at her side. The capybara hovered over her like an anxious parent whilst she coaxed as much warmth as she could back into the tiny, chilled body in her hands. Once BeeBeee had stirred enough to open his eyes, she fed him syringe after syringe of warmed milk, in between shooting Teedo venomous looks as he tried to stammer an apology. 

And through the whole thing, Kylo stayed by her side until she was certain that BeeBee was no longer in danger. He nuzzled the hoglet’s tiny head, and followed Rey as she tucked it back into the familiar warmth of its nest.

Gratitude and potent, burning affection bubbled within Rey. She threw her arms around him, and her tears of relief soaked his fur. He nuzzled her neck, and lapped at her jaw with his warm, wet tongue.

“Thank you,” she said thickly, and rewarded him with a vigorous belly rub that had Kylo positively trilling with delight.

* * *

Sometimes, there is no bond more powerful and resolute than that formed in the fires of a shared peril. And thus it arose that Ben-known-as-Kylo the capybara and BeeBee the hoglet became inseparable. Every time BeeBee was placed in his cage, he would whine and mewl and make such a racket until he was back with his giant protector once more.

Had he been fully capable of expressing his human emotions, Ben would have been exasperated at this turn of affairs. But that mischievous little hoglet had slithered into the chasms in his heart that he once believed only money and power - and more latterly, _Rey_ \- could fill, and he found himself brimming with a hitherto unknown love for BeeBee.

He watched over as she fed their tiny charge, and attempted to join in her serenades as best he could with his new voice. It never failed to elicit a smile from her. “You know Kylo,” she cooed to him one morning, “BeeBee is actually similar to _bébé,_ which is the French word for baby. And that’s what he is,” she said as she ran a fingernail gently over the hoglet’s belly. “Our baby.”

At night, when BeeBee lay slumbering against him, Ben missed his parents the most. How dearly he wished for just one last chance to see them again; to apologise for his misdeeds, to feel the warmth of his father’s arms and the tenderness of his mother’s kiss. But he poured every iota of that regret and longing into caring for his tiny charge.

As the bitterness of spring gave way to the bright promise of summer, Rey started to allow BeeBee time outdoors - carried, of course, on Ben’s back. But he understood how protective she was of that tiny hedgehog - how she saw herself, a once abandoned and neglected child in him. This was a gesture of her utmost trust. Even if Ben could never have her love the way he so fervently desired, he had this.

And that would be enough.

* * *

It was an unusually drizzly day in May when Amilyn called Rey into her office. There was something sombre about her countenance that made Rey nervous.

“I’ve got news,” she told Rey. “A friend of mine has a contact at the Coruscant Zoo.” And before Amilyn could utter another word, Rey already knew that this was about Kylo.

Her eyes drifted to the window, and she spotted him toddling around the grass, bearing BeeBee on his back like some sort of Emperor or god. The sight had always delighted her, but now she felt the bitter tang of regret on her tongue.

* * *

As soon as Rey stepped out of the building and into the main enclosure, Ben knew something was amiss. Her shoulders sagged, and when she regarded him and BeeBee, her face did not brighten with joy the way it normally would.

Suddenly, it felt as though he had swallowed a block of lead.

Rey joined him on the grass, and plucked angrily at a few blades. A sigh carrying the weight of the world escaped her, and suddenly she bent forward to nuzzle her face against his neck. He felt hot tears soak through his fur, and sear him to the bone.

“I’ve got news for you,” she whispered, pulling away to gaze at him with a forlorn expression. Every word was laced with raw pain. “The Coruscant Zoo have been in touch-” And before the next syllable left her lips, an anguished sound tore from Ben’s lungs, startling them both and little BeeBee too. “No, not like that! Amilyn says they have a whole herd of capybara - lots of new friends for you. A new… family,” and her voice cracked on that word.

_No_ , he wanted to protest. _I don’t need a new family. Just you and BeeBee._

_I can’t lose you…_

He barely listened to her next words, knowing that the decision had already been made. Against his wishes. Against _hers._ It was only when the word “tomorrow” was uttered that his ears pricked up.

Oh God… was this going to be their last full day together? And how was BeeBee - his tiny charge, his _friend_ \- going to understand and handle his absence? The poor little mite would think that he had been abandoned again… And that stung Ben’s heart.

He pressed his cheek against Rey’s, smearing tears between them. 

BeeBee evidently sensed something was wrong, and began to mewl. Rey gingerly lifted him off Ben’s back, and held the little hoglet over her heart with her free arm around Ben. Life continued around them, unperturbed, as their little family wept and mourned for their lost future.


	5. Goodbye Yellow Brick Road

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to everyone who has read this story, and left kudos/comments. I am immensely grateful to you all. Although this is the final chapter, I do have an idea for a tiny epilogue if anyone is interested?
> 
> I hope you enjoy the conclusion to this little modern fairy tale, and thank you once again to Bombastique for such an amazing prompt!
> 
> Content warning: brief mention of medical examination and police.
> 
> Chapter title comes from the Elton John song of the same name.

hift end came far too soon. BeeBee had made his displeasure well known at being placed in his own cage at bedtime, and not cuddled up to his giant, warm protector. Every squeal and scratch at his cage bars felt like a dagger taken to Ben’s heart. 

He curled into himself, smelling the lingering traces of Rey’s scent against his fur, and wishing he could sear that smell into his brain. 

She had tried to comfort him earlier - explaining that, as well as new friends, he might even find a mate amongst this new herd. But the only mate he wanted - the only lips he wanted to kiss, the only heart he wanted to hold - was _her._ He feared to sleep, lest that beautiful dream of him returned to human form, and kissing her senseless were to recur. The torment alone would kill him.

Ben - despite his sweeping passions - had considered himself a reasonably rational human being. Being a transformed in a cuddly overgrown rodent infatuated with his wildlife rehabber had changed that - or perhaps his brain had regressed to a simpler, more animalistic nature? Nevertheless, every tick of the wall clock felt like the countdown to his doom.

At 9 pm, he was furious.

At 10 pm, he was frantic.

At 11 pm, he was despondent.

And, as midnight loomed, with the horrifying promise of a new day, he decided to act. Raindrops pattered against the windows - but he hesitated for no more than a moment before his resolve crystallised. 

Beaumont was on night shift tonight; Ben watched with narrowed eyes as the man reached into BeeBee’s cage, and took him to the table for his latest feed. 

A quick flick of the lock was all it took; the cage door sprang open, and Ben bolted. 

His webbed feet did not slip on the tiles, but neither that, nor Beaumont’s startled cry or yells of “Kylo!”, nor the swirling clouds and looming thunderstorm, would deter him. He focussed only on Rey’s scent. 

She lived close - he knew not where - but he would find her.

* * *

Normally, Rey would not mind the solitude. But tonight, the aching silence of the cottage threatened to drown her.

Rose was staying at her girlfriend Kaydel’s house tonight. And anyway, she was rarely one to stay up this late. She owned the local bakery, and early starts were _de rigueur_ in her line of work. Rey too was partial to an early night - their friends had nicknamed them “the youngest grandmas in Chandrilla”, a claim neither refuted and both merely responded to with chagrined smiles and laughter.

But tonight, sleep evaded Rey. Her mind drifted to Kylo and his eerily human responses and understanding. What was running through his mind tonight, she wondered? He had seemed - what was that word Amilyn had used to describe him? - _maudlin_ earlier today. He and BeeBee and their strange friendship had been the talk and delight of the rehab centre. Kylo’s absence would alter that place in more ways than she dared to imagine…

That not-so-little scamp had burrowed his way into her heart in a way no other creature she had cared for ever had. Saying goodbye to him would be a scar she would always carry… And one day - perhaps sooner than she was willing to acknowledge - she would have to bid farewell to BeeBee too, as the hoglet grew old enough to be returned to the wild. 

And she found herself wondering if perhaps she wasn’t as cut out for her current career as she had once hoped… For she was too quick to project her own situation onto the creatures, and unable to care for them with the detached affection of her co-workers. Perhaps, she mused, it was time to revisit her dreams of training as an engineer. There was little danger of her becoming emotionally invested in mechanisms.

But that train of thought was interrupted by a scratching sound at the front door - louder even than the deluge occurring outside - and a familiar shrill whistle…

Rey was not foolish; she and Rose had spent too many rainy Sundays watching horror movies for her mind not to immediately go to the worst case scenario. But the moment she heard Kylo’s cry, she stumbled incredulously to the front door and opened it.

The flash of lightning - followed uncomfortably close by a thunderclap - was blinding. The next thing Rey knew, she was on her back with a very wet - and very excitable - rodent the size of a small child sitting on her stomach and licking her like she was the most delicious treat.

“What the fuck, Kylo?” she said on a laugh. “How did you get here?”

Rather than allow him to drip over the carpet, she gathered him in her arms and carried him to the bathroom. 

“I’d offer you my hairdryer, but the fuse blew yesterday and I’ve not had time to fix it,” Rey remarked as she rubbed at his back with a threadbare towel. 

She could have sworn he arched one shoulder as if to shrug and say, “Don’t worry, it happens.”

Once Kylo was dry - or as close to that as she could get him - he scrambled out of the bathtub, and stood on his hind legs until he was eye to eye with Rey, and began to lick her face.

“What the heck has gotten into you, Kylo?” She grumped, even though a brilliant grin like up her face like a supernova. “And don’t think you’re not in trouble for running away! But,” and she sighed wistfully, “I am glad to see you.”

They padded to her bedroom, with its pale blue walls and a double bed whose covers were pulled back. Kylo leapt onto her bed, and gave her a bashful look as if to ask, “Is this all right?”

Rey chucked, and slid under the covers, finally noticing the chill in her body. “You can’t stay here, you know,” she told him as he crawled up the bed to lay his head near hers. “The only reason I’m letting you stay tonight is because it’s raining cats and dogs outside. First thing tomorrow, we’re going back to the Centre. And don’t turn that pitying gaze on me, Kylo,” she added with a playful finger wag. 

Kylo nuzzled her temple.

“Can I tell you a secret?” She whispered. Amazingly, he almost seemed to nod. “I know I’m not supposed to have favourites at the centre… But I think you’re mine. Sometimes, I swear you must be human.” Her fingers found that sweet spot behind his right ear, and a beautiful melody of clicks and coos filled his lungs. “I wish I could keep you with me, always…” And she leaned forward to press a kiss to his cold, wet nose.

A blinding light filled the room. Rey had the ridiculous notion that lightning had struck the house. 

“What the fuck-” She started, reaching for Kylo to check he was all right… but instead of touching fur, her hand came into contact with bare flesh…

Her vision cleared; and instead of a capybara sitting on her bed, was a man. A very large, very bewildered, and _very_ naked man. 

* * *

This is often the point where the fairy tale would end. The transformed and reformed prince and his true love would weep and embrace and kiss, and the sun would rise on their first day of their happily ever after.

But - as is so often the way with life - the truth is a little messier.

What happened next was thus:

For what felt like eternity, Rey and the unclothed stranger blinked and stared at each other in silence. Then, as though a jolt of lightning had struck them, they each moved. Him, blushing, to cover up his nudity. Her, to reach for the book on her nightstand and brandish it in his direction.

“Who the fuck are you and what the fuck are you doing in my fucking house?” She snarled, her dog-eared copy of _Pride and Prejudice_ poised to wallop him if he came any closer.

He held his hands up. “Rey,” he said in a hoarse voice, “It’s me! Kylo - well, my _real_ name is Ben-” But his next words were cut off as he found himself dodging said book as it was thrown at him. 

Fury burns hot; but it burns fast. And once Rey’s heartbeat had slowed and the frantic heaving of her breaths quietened, she took a moment to regard this interloper. More specifically, his wide, _hopeful_ eyes. Eyes she had seen before on another face…

The man took her silence as permission to speak. “Look, I know this is insane - I’m still not entirely certain I haven’t spent the last few months in the throes of a mental breakdown - but I swear, it’s me. I was cursed - and you…” his voice broke on a sob, “You kissed me and broke it.”

With the same tentativeness she would apply to calming a frightened animal, she reached out to touch his face. He leaned into her touch, and his lips glanced against her wrist. 

She swallowed. “I… I don’t know if I believe you. I _want_ to…”

And the man who claimed to have once been Kylo the capybara nodded. “I wouldn’t either, if I was in your position.” He sighed, and ran a hand through his damp hair. “You always set an alarm on your phone so that you can feed BeeBee on the dot. You sing to him,” and he shook his head and chuckled. “And I used to try and join in with you. The first time we met, you got sauce on your chin.” Slowly enough that she might withdraw if she found the subject too delicate, he curled a hand around her right bicep. “You told me about your scar, and let me kiss - well, lick it, I suppose. I used to bring you daffodils and try to kiss you.” At that last admission, he dropped his head, suddenly bashful.

A bright, warm feeling filled Rey, and truth settled in her mind and heart.

“It is you,” she breathed, her vision hazy with tears. As if her arms had animated themselves, Rey found herself tugging him into her embrace, and weeping against his bare chest. But she soon became aware of one particular part of his anatomy that seemed _very_ responsive towards her…

With a blush and a stammer, they broke apart. Kylo - no, she mentally correct, _Ben -_ clutched her duvet tighter around himself, and a blush painted his skin from the tips of his ears to the top of his _very_ broad chest…

Rey forced her eyes to snap to his, and they shared a bashful, awkward giggle.

“Ummm, Rey?”

“Yes, Ben?” 

“Can I… can I use your phone? Also,” he gestured vaguely over his naked torso that her fingers itched to explore, “I don’t suppose you have anything that might… fit me?”

Rey frowned. Whilst she herself was tall, Ben was at least a head taller - and exceptionally broad. She opened her lips to answer no, but her eyes fell on her blue dressing gown, with its worn elbows, torn pocket and girlish butterfly pattern. She offered Ben an apologetic smile. 

“How desperate are you?”

* * *

In the months since his transformation from human to capybara, Ben Solo had imagined what it would be like to reunite with his parents. In precisely none of those daydreams had be pictured himself sitting on a couch, naked but for a borrowed dressing gown.

His father had answered the phone on the third ring, his voice gruff from sleep. “Hello?”

Ben hesitated, but Rey gave him an encouraging nod. “Hi, Dad. It’s me.”

When the doorbell rang less than an hour later, Ben was certain that the speed limit must have been broken for them to arrive so quickly. But such questions of legality dissolved as he found himself sandwiched between two weeping, grateful and very tactile parents.

Rey had excused herself to make tea. Ben knew it was as much a gesture of privacy as to conceal her wistful envy. But when she returned a few minutes later, with a tray containing four mugs, and a stack of home-made shortbread, her eyes were red from tears. Her hands shook as she sat the tray down on her small coffee table; and she found herself startled as Ben’s mother - the fearsome and formidable Leia Organa - pulled into a bone-crushing hug.

Meanwhile, Ben was forced to endure his father’s professional attention – having a pen-torch shone in his eyes and a litany of questions bordering on interrogation.

“Han, give him some room!” Leia had admonished when she finally relinquished her hold on Rey. “But,” she added as she picked up her cup and took a long, contemplative sip, “That’s not to say I don’t have some questions of my own…”

A quick Internet search had ascertained that Ben and Hux had been reported missing the day after their visit to the witch’s cafe on Takodana Crescent. Whilst the disappearance of the country’s youngest CEO had garnered significant column inches and ensuing gossip, there were no leads and no suspicion of foul play. On scrutiny, the company’s accounts were pristine; and ultimately the police/court of public opinion had decided that he and Hux had run off together as part of some romantic assignation.

The notion drew a snort from Ben, and he wondered exactly how Hux was getting on in his new life as naked mole rat…

Since the truth was likely to have Ben declared insane, he and Rey had hurriedly come up with what he hoped was a more plausible tale. One that involved Ben having no memory of the last few months until waking up starkers in the woods and being found wandering by Rey. There were plenty of holes in the story that even a semi-competent interrogator would pick up on - let alone one of the most well regarded solicitors in the country - but time was not in their favour, so they had to improvise.

His parents listened with pursed lips and sceptical expressions, but they did not start poking holes in the story. For now, at least. Ben dreaded to think what inquisitions he would be facing from his mother in particular once the glow of his return had faded… 

Han had brought some of his own gym clothing for Ben to wear - the t-shirt was strained against his chest, but still infinitely more modest than Rey’s dressing gown.

As he spoke with his parents, he found his gaze unconsciously drifting over to Rey. What would become of their friendship now, he wondered? Whilst the exact parameters of his transformation from capybara back to human remained a mystery, he knew one thing. In fairy tales, only a true love’s kiss could turn a frog back to a prince. But it was one thing to care for him as a capybara… How did that affection translate now he was back in human form…?

He watched her bite her lip, and longed to feel their tender caress against his own. He crossed his legs, knowing his current attire would do little to hide his very obvious attraction to her.

Much as he would have liked to wind her hand through his, to nestle into her embrace as he had done in his capybara body, it would not do in front of their present audience.

Nor in front of the police officers who came to question him at the behest of his mother, and who listened to his story with polite disinterest when no overt criminality became apparent. 

“Tell you what, Miss Niima,” he overheard one of the detectives tell Rey as she showed them out later, “I haven’t had a shift this crazy since the Widow Secura spiked the punch at a Church Faire three summers ago. First a damn capybara escapes from the wildlife rehab centre, and then a naked missing person shows up in the woods!” 

An oddly high-pitched laugh escaped Rey. “Crazy indeed.”

Whilst his mother saw off the police officers with Rey, Ben’s father leaned over on the couch to whisper, “Just so you know, kid… That’s not how amnesia works.”

And Ben merely chuckled uncomfortably in response.

* * *

Being in a house again - sleeping in a proper, _human_ bed with a mattress and pillows - was sheer luxury. Even if it was back in his childhood bedroom, amongst the shadows of an adolescence he was re-examining with fresher, more mature, eyes. Ben supposed that he could have gone back to his penthouse… But he wanted no vestiges of that existence - nor the callous, arrogant, _greedy_ man he had become – to intrude on his new life. 

That first night, Ben awoke in a panic; first that BeeBee seemed to no longer be snuggled up against him; followed by the alien feeling of his limbs being too long… Of course, his memory soon caught up, and he groaned and rubbed a hand over his stubbled face.

This would take some getting used to…

Although he had been quickly replaced - by a fresh out of retirement, and no more pleasant for the experience Snoke himself - Ben’s first act on arrival back in Coruscant was to resign with immediate effect. He wanted to find a better life. And if he were to become a better man, and he could not do that with the same avaricious poison coursing in his veins.

And of course, there was the Rey issue…

They had talked every day since his return to Coruscant a month ago - calls and texts and emails - but he had not seen her in person since leaving her little cottage that morning with his parents. Nor did they talk much about the events or feelings that might have caused the enchantment over him to be lifted. Ben found himself growing despondent, even as he cherished this burgeoning friendship with her as a man instead of a capybara.

Each evening, Rey recounted BeeBee’s progress with pride. Ben felt his heart soar with joy at every new milestone achieved, even as he missed his tiny hoglet friend. She also kept him abreast of the town gossip. Even weeks later, his mysterious “reappearance” was still a significant topic of conversation in the Mos Eisley Arms and at Rose’s cafe-bakery. And sometimes, when their conversations had run dry, she would sigh and tell him that she missed him. There was an encyclopaedia of unspoken words in that sigh. Who was she missing, he wondered with an aching heart? Kylo the capybara, or Ben the man?

The openness she had exhibited when he was simply an animal in her care - rather than a man utterly devoted to her - was gone; replaced by a guardedness that he feared was unbreachable.

His parents too seemed to recognise the cause of his melancholia.

“Why don’t you invite her down for the weekend?” His mother broached gently over a dinner of peppercorn steak and roasted vegetables. (God, it was good to eat something other than mashed fruit and foliage!)

“Yeah,” His father added. “We’ll even make ourselves scarce if you two want some, you know… private time.”

And Ben had spluttered on his drink, and begged them to change the subject.

About six weeks after his transformation (or re-transformation - he wasn’t sure of the specific vocabulary to describe his ordeal), Rey called him one afternoon. This was odd, as he knew she would be on shift; and it was too close to BeeBee’s next feed for it to be her lunch break. 

“Hey, Ben.”

“Hello, Rey. How are you?”

Her answer was a sigh. “I’m good. I think.” He heard her click her tongue against the roof of her mouth before she continued, “So… I have some news.”

His stomach sank at her words. “Is BeeBee all right?”

She laughed. “BeeBee is fine. Better than fine, actually. He’s now grown enough that we think he’s ready to go back into the wild. That was why I was calling you. I’m going to release him on Saturday, and I was wondering… That is, if you were free… If you wanted to be there with me whilst I do it?”

A grin spread across Ben’s face, deep enough that his cheeks ached. “I would love that. And maybe…” he added, drinking from a wellspring of newfound confidence, “Maybe we could grab lunch afterwards. My treat. I’ve never properly thanked you for what you did for me.”

There was a pause on the line, and Ben was on the verge of anxiety when she laughed airily and said, “I’d love that.”

* * *

They met at her house that Saturday morning. Ben had chewed his lip and worried his hands through the hair for the entire train journey to Chandrilla. Had he misinterpreted her feelings? Was her acceptance of his invitation done out of politeness rather than lingering friendship and perhaps even the seeds of something deeper…? 

Whatever her reason, Ben’s fears quieted the moment he saw in the garden, dressed in yellow sundress and sniffing some honeysuckle. A flush spread over her cheeks, highlighting those gorgeous freckles he yearned to know with his fingers and tongue.

“Look who’s here, BeeBee!” She cooed, scooping up the not-so-tiny hoglet. He was a proper, adolescent hedgehog now. 

Ben felt that odd mix of pride and anxiety. “Hi, BeeBee,” he said. “Our baby is all grown up!”

“That he is.”

She tucked BeeBee into a shoebox, before offering Ben her hand. That first touch was like fire. 

It was like coming home.

They walked for a few minutes in companionable silence, before they reached the meadow at the edge of the town; flowers of every colour erupted from the ground; and the afternoon sun bathed them both in a soft light.

With tender hands - and glistening eyes - Rey laid the shoebox on the ground. BeeBee poked his head outwards, and sniffed suspiciously at the air for a moment.

"It's all right," Rey said with an encouraging nod. The little hedgehog clambered out of the box, and, sensing it was safe to do so, padded off to explore the meadow.

Ben's eyes stung, but his heart swelled with pride. But before he could give words to this moment and its poignancy, he felt Rey's soft fingers on his shoulder, searing him to bone even through his shirt.

"It's good to see you," she said, eyes downcast shyly. "I've missed you, Ben." 

"I've missed you too." Hesitantly, Ben tilted a finger beneath Rey's chin, and hoped every iota of his love for her shone through; for he saw the same fire reflected in her bright eyes and soft smile.

Their first kiss was tentative; a gentle brush of lips that left both eager and hungry for more. She slid her arms around his shoulders, and he enveloped her waist in one giant hand, as the movements of their mouths (and soon their tongues) grew more urgent, more frantic. 

She tasted of honey, and lemon, and something that was so uniquely, distinctly _Rey,_ a flavour he could rapidly become intoxicated upon. She chased his mouth with the same ravenous hunger, until both sets of lungs burned for air.

When they parted, flushed and panting, the only word Ben could muster was, "Wow."

Rey's smile was almost incandescent. "Wow indeed." And she brushed a hand against his cheek. "I think I prefer kissing this version of you."

They shared a laugh before their lips met once more. She tugged on his shirt collar, and pulled him to lie back in the grass with her.

Already, Ben knew his cock was responding to this very pleasant recreation of his dream. Her left hand wound through his hair, and right roved over his neck, his arms, his back, learning the hard planes of his body.

Ben decided to indulge in some explorations of his own… He tore his mouth from hers, gratified to see a pout form on her kiss stung lips. 

He kissed the flush painting those freckled cheeks and the sharp angle of her jaw. He trailed his lips and tongue down the golden column of her throat, delighting in the symphony of sighs and moans. Though his sense of smell had muted on his reversion from capybara to human, her scent remained burned onto his mind. He drank in great lungfuls of it - less potent now, but no less beautiful.

And certainly no less arousing.

He was fully hard now; nestled in the cradle of her hips. She could almost certainly feel it, given the way she rocked against him. 

Perhaps he had not fully lost Kylo's animalistic instincts. He was quite certain that they would have started rutting out in the open had he not lifted his gaze for a moment.

"Ummm, Rey?"

"What's wrong, Ben?"

His cheeks coloured with a very different kind of flush. "BeeBee is looking at us."

She craned her neck, and a filthy giggle escaped her at the sight of the hedgehog sitting but a foot away and regarding them with a quizzical look. "Oh, God!"

They righted their clothing, doing the best they could to brush off the grass, yet the very prominent green stain on Rey's skirt might as well have advertised their activities. But Ben was too deliriously happy to care. 

They dropped little kisses on BeeBee’s snout and watched him toddle off to freedom. The moment he was gone from their sight, Rey tugged on Ben's hand, a mischievous grin playing on her lips. "You know," she said, biting her lip. "I have an empty house right now… And the pizza place in town does home delivery…"

And so they sprinted back to her cottage, the air filled with laughter and the promise of so much more…

(And neither were surprised when, as they sat in the garden to watch the sunset - sated, happy and drunk on the throes of blossoming love – a familiar hedgehog crept through the gap in the fence to join them. Families, it seems, come in all shapes and sizes.)


	6. Epilogue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> We saw a snippet of Rey, Ben and BeeBee's happy ending... But what happened to Hux and Bazine?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to everyone who has read, left kudos and commented on this fic. Your kind words and encouragement have been a source of delight and happiness.
> 
> Once this fic is off anon, there are quite a few people I need to thank for their assistance in bouncing ideas and beta reading. Stay tuned...
> 
> Content warning: sexist language used by one character (who promptly gets his comeuppance!)

ife, in the present view of one Armitage Hux, Esquire, fucking sucked. After all, he had done everything _right_ \- worked hard at school; taken the subjects and classes his ambitious and overbearing father demanded; gotten a place to read Law at a prestigious University (Brendol Hux’s own _alma mater_ , no less); and, upon graduation, commenced a high-flying legal career. Snoke himself had appointed him the firm’s lead solicitor. 

Armitage Hux ought to be spending his evenings in Michelin-starred restaurants, sipping fine wines from his excellent cellar or imbibing rare whiskeys at his gentleman’s club. Not stuck in the body of a naked mole rat, eating cold mashed potatoes and sharing a smelly cage with a cantankerous chinchilla. 

He at least found companionship in the other creatures - or curse victims, he soon came to learn. For every beast locked in a cage in both the front and back rooms of Bazine Netal’s cafe was once a man, too. A man who dared to cross her, and learned that the wrath of a witch can have bizarre and humiliating consequences. 

“Some bitches need to learn to take a fucking compliment,” Pryde the chinchilla would frequently remark. “You’d think a thing like that would actually enjoy the attention!”

It didn’t take a genius to work out what _his_ crime had been… 

Of course, when it came to his fellow inmates - for that was essentially what they were, with this bizarre woman as their jailer - Hux took the approach that he would serve his own punishment without the additional burden of theirs. 

How long passed in his cage, Hux soon lost count. Days seemed to meld into one another. Early mornings came as the witch opened the cafe and flirted shamelessly - and generally unsuccessfully - with an endless parade of delivery men. Patrons would drift in and out throughout the day - and some would be permitted to handle a few of the inmates. Mitaka the guinea pig (formerly a bank manager who had declined her a loan) was especially popular. And whilst some of the children cooed over Hux and his chinchilla neighbour, they were not permitted to be handled.

“Chinchillas have fur slip, you see,” the witch would explain in an achingly patient tone, “And Pryde is terribly naughty and always trying to escape. We don’t want to hurt him, after all.”

And Pryde would inevitably give a high-pitched bark, and retreat to the corner of their cage to sulk some more.

* * *

It had taken several weeks (and plenty of cajoling and offers of support on Rey’s part) before Ben found the mettle to face his fears, and return to Takodana Crescent. But she held his hand, murmured words of reassurance in his ear, and peppered his face with sweet kisses as they walked along the street. And though his heart thundered and his palms sweated, Ben Solo felt oddly calm.

“Do you want me to come in with you?” Rey asked as they hesitated on the corner. 

Ben shook his head. “This is something that I need to do. Alone.” But he leaned down to brush a kiss to her eyelids. “Besides,” he added, rubbing a hand over the back of his neck, “If we get a repeat of last time…”

“I’ll be waiting outside with a kiss to reverse it,” Rey chuckled, and brushed her lips against his in a teasing caress. “Just make sure she doesn’t turn you into a crocodile.”

He swatted her backside at that. “I thought love was meant to be unconditional!”

“And crocodiles are fucking terrifying!”

“Got it, no crocodiles!”

The street looked just as empty and desolate as it had done that winter’s day when a greedy, arrogant, callous-hearted man entered Bazine Netal’s cafe, and escaped as a capybara. Most of the shops were still boarded up. Ben at least felt gratified at seeing the cafe remained defiantly open. 

But, as he approached, the scene within gave him pause. 

For the witch herself appeared to be in the middle of wrestling a gigantic, hissing and very furious lizard. Unfortunately, before Ben Solo could hastily dart away and plan to come back at a more opportune time, her eyes tore from the creature and stared at him through the grimy glass.

With a sigh, Ben entered the cafe. _Remember, Rey is just outside…_

“What the fuck do you want?” Bazine Netal spat, her arms snaked around the neck of the lizard, which only seemed to become more irate at the sight of Ben. 

“Miss Netal, I came to apologise for my earlier behaviour,” he began, before his eyes narrowed. “Is that a komodo dragon?”

“Well, it was your fucking boss!” she said, but her eyes softened. “And how the Hell are you even human again?”

Ben frowned. “When I learned my lesson, the enchantment - sorry, am I using that word right? - broke.” But a sudden notion struck him; one that would not quieten until he had voiced it. “You didn’t mean for that to happen?”

The Netal woman shrugged as best she could whilst still keeping hold of her reptilian hostage. “And what lesson did you learn?”

Ben ran a hand through his hair. “Respect, compassion,” he said, and his gaze grew wistful. “And love.”

“Huh.”

Their conversation was terminated by a diminutive woman with large glasses and an even larger scowl materialising in the cafe amidst a cloud of lavender smoke. “Bazine Netal, what have I told you about throwing out curses willy-nilly?”

Ben took the appearance of this second witch as indication he should leave.

He spied Rey leaning against a lamp-post, anxiously fiddling with the buttons on her cardigan until she spotted him. Fast as his feet could carry him, he ran to her. Her answering smile was incandescent, her kisses druggingly decadent, and her love more precious than any material good in the universe.


End file.
